Why did the 49ers select Smith over Rodgers?

[jakedog56]

According to Aaron Rodgers:

"The story that I heard, and I don't know if it's true or not, was that Mike Nolan said that when he saw Alex open the car door for his mom, he knew that was the quarterback he wanted,"

Apparently Aaron never had a chance to display his manners because: "I was at lunch with [the 49ers]," Rodgers said. "My mom wasn't there. My dad wasn't there."

Mike Nolan stated that "the team went with Smith because Rodgers was "too cocky."

Aaron Rodgers explains why 49ers passed on him with No. 1 pick in 2005

 

[Manster7588]

I think it's because they fucked up. I thought it at the time and I know it now.

 

[Bulletz]

I think it's because they fucked up. I thought it at the time and I know it now.

Yep. Just a case of not knowin no better.

 

[Iggloo]

A lot of people at the time thought Smith was better. What's more shocking is how far he slid after the first selection.

 

[blue_suns]

If only the Ravens didn't draft Boller in '03, they would have probably got Rodgers

 

[Rod Smart]

A lot of people at the time thought Smith was better. What's more shocking is how far he slid after the first selection.

This

Alex Smith v Aaron Rodgers was a toss up.

2- There was no excuse for the Dolphins to draft a backup running back when their starter was a 34 year old Gus Frerotte.
5- John Gruden was happy with Chris Simms, Brian Griese, Bruce Gradkowski, and Jake Plummer's contract. So he took a running back.
6- The Titans still had Steve McNair. He was set to count $50 million against the cap the following season.
8- The Cardinals had Josh McClown and the rotting corpse of Kurt Warner. In fairness, Warner found the fountain of youth and led them to the playoffs in subsequent seasons, but he was a dumpster fire in 2005.
10- Friggen Matt Millen. Joey Harrinton and Jeff Garcia and Mike Williams > Aaron Rodgers
13- Saints were sick of Aaron Brooks by this point. They should have drafted his replacement. Lucky them getting Brees for nothing the following year.
15- Trent Green was good. He was also 35
16- Texans. This was year four for David Carr. It was obvious he either stunk, or was going to die on the field from being sacked to much. Drafting the quarterback with the quickest release since Marino would have been smarter than a fat defensive tackle.
21- Jaguars already had a quarterback controversy. Two quarterbacks = zero quarterbacks
23- Raiders were rolling with Kerry Collins as a part time rental player
25- Redskins were taking a quarterback. They took Jason Campbell. They could have easily traded up ahead of the Packers (as the Raiders did with Seattle) and taken a far superior quarterback.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

A lot more hindsight with this than some people seem to remember. Smith vs Rodgers wasn't all that one sided during the draft. I kind of wonder what happens if Smith doesn't rip up his shoulder and got to sit behind Brett Favre. It's a fun thought experiment, but it's ultimately an unproductive one.

 

[jarntt]

"Mike Nolan stated that "the team went with Smith because Rodgers was "too cocky.""

LOL at the above. You may not agree with their choice and i'm sure they'd like a do over, but they sure as Hell nailed the cocky part...I think it's a silly conversation since Rodgers dropped all the way down to 24. Why not ask the other 23 teams???

And funny thing about hat draft. What a pathetic top 10:

1 San Francisco 49ers Alex Smith QB Utah
2 Miami Dolphins Ronnie Brown RB Auburn
3 Cleveland Browns Braylon Edwards WR Michigan
4 Chicago Bears Cedric Benson RB Texas
5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Cadillac Williams RB Auburn
6 Tennessee Titans Pacman Jones CB West Virginia
7 Minnesota Vikings Troy Williamson WR South Carolina
8 Arizona Cardinals Antrel Rolle DB Miami (Fla.)
9 Washington Redskins Carlos Rogers DB Auburn
10 Detroit Lions Mike Williams WR USC

 

[SonnyCID]

Rodgers was raw. I don't know if he would have fared any better in those early years had SF drafted him, rather than going to GB, getting 3 years to refine his game, then step on the field in a much better system with a much better team once Favre walked.

 

[RegentDenali]

How many different HCs, OCs, and QB coaches did Alex Smith have to deal with during his time with the 9ers.

I'm not saying Smith ended up a superior choice than Rodgers, but when you dig into it, Rodgers benefitted greatly from the stability of the coaching staff and not being thrown to the wolves right away. Got to sit on the bench for years being slowly groomed to take Farves place. You couldn't of asked for a better situation for any QB taken in the first round.

Smith didn't get any of those benefits. Would Rodgers of had the same career and numbers he had in GB, if he got drafted by SF instead?

I don't think the situations are comparable.

 

[Pattersonca65]

I don't think it was that simple. A lot of other teams passed on Rodgers too. Greg Cosell did a piece on this which was really good. Yes, Rodgers did have an attitude but there was more to it than that. The thought by many scouts was that while Rodgers was more polished than Smith having played in a pro style offense for four years at Cal, they also thought he was a product of Tedford and might have peaked. Smith was only 20 years old and thought to be more athletic than Rodgers. The thought at the time was Smith had a much higher upside than Rodgers' Smith just needed to learn a pro style offense and get a bit older.

 

[WizardHawk]

A lot more hindsight with this than some people seem to remember. Smith vs Rodgers wasn't all that one sided during the draft. I kind of wonder what happens if Smith doesn't rip up his shoulder and got to sit behind Brett Favre. It's a fun thought experiment, but it's ultimately an unproductive one.

You mean there is something else to do up here in the long off season besides trolling or banter about fun thought experiments?

 

[Pattersonca65]

A lot more hindsight with this than some people seem to remember. Smith vs Rodgers wasn't all that one sided during the draft. I kind of wonder what happens if Smith doesn't rip up his shoulder and got to sit behind Brett Favre. It's a fun thought experiment, but it's ultimately an unproductive one.

Smith was affected greatly when Norv Turner left. Had Norv Turner not bolted for SD, he would have been much better off. Even so, for whatever reason, Smith just doesn't make the type of throws that Rodgers can make and I don't think he would ever be that kind of QB and I do like Alex. I defended him a lot over the years. I think he is a good one, just never a great one.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

You mean there is something else to do up here in the long off season besides trolling or banter about fun thought experiments?

Yeah, that's probably true at this time of year... though camp isn't all that far away now. I have seen this debate now so many times over the past 3 years on the SBN site that I have just about given up anyone changing their opinions. It's a fatigued argument for me more than most is probably why I say that, myopic as it probably is.

 

[tducey]

Yeah, Smith/Rodgers was a debate in 2005 for sure. It's surprising to see how far Rodgers fell in 2005. Just imagine if the 49ers had picked him. Could have become a dynasty team for sure.

 

[wazzu31]

Pretty sure Rodgers quitting on Cal in the Holiday bowl had something to do with Smith going 1st and scaring some teams away.

 

[Clayton]

A history lesson for you guys:

The answer is Jeff Tedford. People thought Aaron Rodgers was a system QB that would bust like Joey Harrington and Akili Smith.

 

[HammerDown]

I'm just here to LOL @ Kaepernick.

Is that okay?

 

[Manster7588]

A lot of people at the time thought Smith was better. What's more shocking is how far he slid after the first selection.

I seem to remember surprised shock being the media narrative when Smith was taken over Rodgers.

 

[jarntt]

I could be incorrect, but I recall that by draft day Smith was the expected pick by all